Category: McCarthyism

Introduction

The term McCarthyism was derived from Joseph McCarthy a former US senator who was a republican of Wisconsin. According to American history, McCarthyism is regarded as the period from 1950 to 1954. During this era, the United States of America was involved in a lot of anti-communism. At this period, the American government considered the American communist party rebellious. The American leadership together with its citizens were assumed either as suspects of communists or communist sympathizers (Keach, 2000, para 6). Thus, this was an era that involved many accusations that were not supported by any evidence. Therefore McCarthyism is a term used to refer to the false allegation of one political faction, on the basis of their political stand. It was a period that existed in America from 1950 to 1954 which affected the majority of Americans negatively. It intimidated the Americans who were pro-communism and resulted to be discriminated against in employment opportunities. This affected their social life negatively. Thus, McCarthyism is not appropriate and hence should not be exercised not only in America but in any state.

Definition of McCarthyism

McCarthyism is defined as a practice of accusing people of disloyalty and especially during pro-communist activity (Keach, 2000, para 6). These accusations are not supported by relevant evidence. Alternatively, McCarthyism can also be referred to as any effort that tries to hinder political criticism or curtail a certain group to express its views on certain issues happening in the government.

Description of McCarthyism

McCarthyism started in the 1940s and ended in 1950. Witch-hunt was the term used to refer to McCarthyism. This meant acts of making accusations that were baseless. This period was referred to as the second red scare because it was the period Americans feared communist. Joseph McCarthy used this period to intimidate people for his personal gain. Nowadays, McCarthyism is still in existence and is used to describe the practice of making false allegations to people without adequate proof of such an existence (Keach, 2000, para 8).

Negative effects of McCarthyism on the lives of Americans

The lives of many Americans were negatively affected by McCarthyism. Majority of Americans who were considered pro-communism lost their lives, while others suffered by losing their jobs. In addition, this period ruined the good perception people had about America. This period was regarded as evil due to the fear it was associated with it (Keach, 2000, para 8). Therefore, anybody that practiced it was excluded from opportunities such as jobs. Many American citizens who were accused suffered greatly as the majority lost their jobs. Thus, it greatly affected the social lives of many Americans negatively. This is because, despite the worldwide belief in American brotherhood, McCarthy had divided the Americans into two factions; the communists and the pro-communist. During recruitments, employers asked the interviewees questions which they were aimed at disclosing which group they supported to affirm whether they will be granted the jobs. The answers were supposed to be according to the Waldorf statement which stated that no known communist would be fired and therefore the pro- communists were fired.

McCarthyisms effect on the political thinking of Americans

Americans feared communalism and the accusations of McCarthy which had no relevant evidence made people not support communism. This is because instead of the government protecting its people by maintaining justice, it accused them falsely. Thus, people had negative attitudes towards politics (Keach, 2000, para 5).

According to the effects that McCarthyism had on the lives of the Americans such as people losing their lives, increased unemployment, and giving America a bad image national wide, then McCarthyism was and not appropriate. For example, during interviews, the firm asked employees questions on politics or other related areas in order to determine their political stand. How they answered these questions enabled the team to determine their stand which resulted in the pro-communist losing the opportunities to be employed, while the communists were employed. Therefore, there was no discrimination among employees.

Conclusion

McCarthyism is not appropriate in any society. It has many negative effects on people and the politics of the country. Therefore, McCarthyism should not be applied because it does not support justice and many innocent people suffer.

References

Keach, W. (2000). Rehabilitating McCarthyism. International Socialist.

The dictionary definition of Blacklist is “a list of persons under suspicion, disfavor, censure, etc.’ Blacklist refers to banning or rejecting something or someone. Those who use blacklists separate the negative from the positive. Blacklists are used for anything but it depends on the action taken after the list is made that make it legal or not. Phone companies are highly involved with blacklists and so are employment companies. Blacklists also has a history in the U.S. Blacklists were the cause of the Red Scare Movement, which led to the Hollywood Blacklist.

The word “blacklist” was first used as a phrase by Philip Massinger in 1639 (‘Blacklist.’ Encyclopedia Britannica, Chicago, 2009. Elibrary). Massinger was born in 1583 and died in 1639. As a dramatist in the sixteenth century, Massinger co authored several plays with other dramatist like Thomas Dekker, John Fletcher and more., and he also authored his own plays like A New Way to Pay Old Debts, The City Madam and The Roman Actor. He used the word “blacklist” when he was describing one of his tragedy plays. Of his plays, four of them was considered a “tragedy,’ Believe As List, The Duke of Milan, The Roman Actor, and The Unnatural Combat which is the one he described with blacklist.

There aren’t several types of blacklists, but there are many several things you can put on a blacklist. For example, several websites have been blacklisted in the past and continue to be listed nowadays. Websites are blacklisted through mailing lists. One way you can check if a website is blacklisted is if search engines like Google and Bing remove them from it their index as it is stated on the Cucan website, “In the context of websites, blacklisting refers to the process of search engines removing a website from their index. “ (“Website Security Guide: What Is a Google Blacklist | Sucuri.” Sucuri Security, 7 Feb. 2019, sucuri.net/guides/what-is-google-blacklist.) that is one of the ways you can tell when a website is on a blacklisted. The way the search engines decide whether a website is to be blacklisted or not, is they constantly search over the net and look for any websites that are potentially being hacked. With the help of several websites like Cucan and GeekFlare, you can type in a website domain or IP address and check to see if it is blacklisted.

Similar to the websites, several companies use employment blacklists. An employment blacklist is when you are being restrained by your previous employer for a job. You can end up being unemployed for several months to years, if you do end up being list. Out of the fifty states in the United States, twenty-nine have statutes on blacklisting, as it states an article by Valerie Bolden-Barrett (Bolden-Barrett, Valerie. “Employment Laws on Blacklisting.” Chron.com, 21 Nov. 2017, work.chron.com/employment-laws-blacklisting-10369.html.). There are several ways for you to end up on a blacklist. First impressions are everything in the business industry, during an interview, if the interviewer thinks you’re being to desperate they might choose to blacklist you. Another thing is not asking questions, it gives off a bad vibe and it represents you in a negative way. Your employer will start to think that you’re not actually interested in the job and that your just in it for the money. Another thing that can earn you a spot on a blacklist is sabotaging a companies name and reputation on your resume. While you’re employed, you can still be blacklisted. While working, if you are caught acting out in any way, that can cost you. She also mentioned in her article that the states who don’t have any laws still investigate blacklisting. Many laws have been made on employment blacklists in different states, they all revolve around the idea that it is illegal to deliberately prohibit someone from being hired in the future. The consequences for that actions in some states is either a civil offense, a crime, or even both. If your former employer doesn’t tell that they put you on a blacklist, which is a law in most states, then you find out whether you were listed or not. If you are looking for a job, especially a job where a specific skill is needed, and you can’t close a deal on the job, than that;s a sign of you maybe being listed. Another sign of being blacklisted is if it’s hard for you to look for a job and economic setting that is good. When the economy is good, looking for a job should be a little easy but, but if you get constantly denied than your most like on a blacklisted. If you think you are blacklisted, depending on what state you live in, your former employer has to inform you that they are blacklisting you, it a law it most states. If you live in a state that has a law against not telling people about blacklisting them, then you have the right to go ask them.

If you’ve ever received the same email over and over again, then you most likely were experiencing an email blacklist. An email blacklist is set to send an email repeatedly, or as some people know it as spam. Depending on the blacklist that sends the spam, that determines the impact it has. Websites like Spamcannibal, NoSolicitado, and Lashback have little impact, but it’s the websites similar to Spamhaus that lead to bounces impacting more than the smaller sites. If you do discover that your on a blacklist, you should try to get your IP address removed from the website as soon as possible. One of the best way to remove yourself from a blacklist, is to have an expert in deliverability with you when you landscape your ISP. According to the SendGrid site you can reduce risk of being added to a list again, “Reputation monitoring is the key to maximum email deliverability. By closely monitoring your complaint rates, you can prevent delivery failures before they happen. Check your stats with each campaign deployment and look for delivery dips and low engagement rates.”(Martinez, Luke. “Avoiding Email Blacklists.” SendGrid, 26 Feb. 2019, sendgrid.com/blog/avoiding-email-blacklists/). This isn’t a for sure going to stop your emails from being blacklisted, but it lowers the chances of it happening again.

Many questions have been asked about credit card blacklist, but they don’t exist. One blacklist you may have heard of is phone blacklisted. Unlike websites, emails and employers, a phone is blacklisted when it’s reported lost or stolen. In order for a phone to be blacklisted, the ESN or IMEI number has to be reported by the original owner or the carrier. Used phones that are sold are usually the phones that are listed. To check whether a phone is on a list, you can check the IMEI/ESN numbers. Once you find the numbers, which are usually located on the battery or in the settings of the phone, call the carrier of the phone. If you do find out that the phone is listed, return the phone to the original owner or the carrier it belongs to. If you are caught with a phone that has been listed, services on the phone start to shut down and sometimes the authorities will track the phone and take from you personally. Returning a blacklisted phone is not easy, and it is very time consuming. When a phone is blocked, only the carrier of the phone can remove it or the original owner can, according to the AT&T Mobility Care, (“Help Me! Blacklisted Phone.” AT&T Support Community, 18 Aug. 2018, forums.att.com/t5/Wireless-Account/help-me-Blacklisted-Phone/td-p/4058568). If you go the opposite route and keep the phone, you will still get all the abilities of a normal phone except for cellular data, and what’s the point of buying a phone you can’t call off of, you might as well buy a brand new one yourself.

The blacklist has a big history in the United States, one the biggest blacklists in U.S. history is the Red Scare Movement. In the mid nineteen hundreds between the nineteen forties and fifties, hundreds of people were blacklisted and labeled as a threat to the communist, this was the start of one of the Red Scares. According to the Oxford research encyclopedia, “The second Red Scare refers to the fear of communism that permeated American politics, culture, and society from the late 1940s through the 1950s.”(Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History, 8 June 2017, oxfordre.com/americanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-6,). It’s been said that the Second Scare was a longer time period than the first one, which took place after World War 1 in the early nineteen hundreds. The Second Scare aslo more persuasive than the first. The Second was affected by the action of “undermining political opponents by making unsubstantiated attacks on their loyalty to the United States.

When ten actors withheld on testifying in front of the House Committee on UnAmerican Activities(HUAC), they were slowly starting the beginning of the Hollywood Blacklist.. Those ten people were known as the Hollywood Ten. The ten were all members and workers in the entertainment industry in Hollywood at the time. The ten consisted of Sam Ornitz, Herbert Biberman, Edward Dmytryk, Lester Cole, Dalton Trumbo, Ring Lardner, Jr., Alvah Bessie, Albert Maltz, Robert Adrian Scott, and John Howard Lawson. The Hollywood studios were backing up them, but they were then sent to prison for a brief time, and the studios left them out to dry. Not only did they stop supporting them, they suspended and took away their pay. After this altercation, the famous Hollywood Blacklist came to life cto destroy peoples lives.

More and more people were being added to the blacklist. The people that were on the list were as stated, ”suspected of sympathizing with liberal or humanitarian causes,” (“Blacklisted.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 2 Apr. 2014,www.biography.com/people/groups/blacklisted). The Hundreds of people that were included in the list were, screen writers, actors, actresses, directors, and many other people who were professionals in the entertainment business. During the early nineteen forties, Hollywood was encouraging the Soviets propagandas. They were being investigated by two senators by the names of Gerald Nye and Burton Wheeler. While investigating Hollywood, Nye and Wheeler were exposed by the Wendell Willkie, who was defending the Hollywood studios, “Wendell Willkie, the lawyer who defended the studios, revealed the senators’ conflation of Judaism with communism, casting the senators as anti-Semites rather than patriots.” (Perlman, Allison. “Hollywood Blacklist.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 9 Aug. 2016, www.britannica.com/topic/Hollywood-blacklist.)

The House Committee on UnAmerican Activities then started to monitor the industries that were affiliated with entertainment. The House of Committee on UnAmerican Activities, “investigated disloyalty among fascists as well as communists,”(Foner, Eric, and John A. Garraty. House Un-American Activities Committee. The Reader’s Companion to American History, 1991. SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com.) They were first assembled on May 26, 1938, and was made official around the nineteen forties. During the monetization, several individuals were exposed by the House Committee on UnAmerican Activities through pamphlets and articles that were publicly published. Of the groups that supported, the American Legion was considered if not the most powerful, one of the most powerful groups. The American Legion was a group of U.S. veterans who according to the Britannica Encyclopedia, “disseminated information about communist associations of media workers,” and encouraged its 2.8 million members to picket movies made by people who had not cooperated with the HUAC.” As the blacklist slowly came to an end, Hollywood retold the story of the Hollywood Blacklist through films like The Front and Guilty by Suspicion. These films helped show how much Hollywood was really affected by the blacklist, by the House Committee on UnAmerican Activities, by the American Legion and other pro-communist groups who tried to put a stop to the entertainment industry in Hollywood.

One of the major reasons for the whole Red Scare Movement and the Hollywood Blacklist is McCarthyism. In the Britannica site it states that the term McCarthyism came to place in the nineteen fifties when Joseph McCarthy was trying to expose communist infiltrators in different areas of the U.S government, (Achter, Paul J. “McCarthyism.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 25 Oct. 2018, www.britannica.com/topic/McCarthyism). McCarthy made many accusations about people, but as much people as he accused, he never won any cases in court. An example of one of his failures is the McCarthy hearings. The McCarthy hearings were televised hearings that went on for 36 days. During the hearings, McCarthyism reached its climax as well as its beginning of decline. During the beginning of the hearings, According to the same Britannica website, McCarthy questioned the Army, “the question of whether the Army had promoted a dentist who had refused to answer questions for the Loyalty Security Screening Board.” Everything during the hearings was going uphill all the way to the point where McCarthy claimed that the lawyer representing the Army hired an unknown person who was associated with a communist front group.

The Salem Witchcraft Trials have been a fascinating and well-known subject to many generations of Americans. For years, there has been speculation as to why they occurred. The witchcraft trials began when several young girls became affected by a strange disease which caused them to have “fits”. The girls began placing blame on members of the community, saying that they were witches. This trend quickly spiraled out of control, resulting in the death of about twenty people. The Salem Witch Trials created a long-lasting image of the New England colonies in which religion dictated the law and nonconformity meant death.

Firstly, the Salem Witchcraft Trials would not have been possible without a deeply religious society. David Goss states, “To the average Puritan of the 1690s, one’s religious faith was as much a part of life as breathing and considered nearly as essential” (110). In fact, the very law that spelled death for so many individuals was based on a bible verse: “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live” (Exodus 22.18). Religion was a vital way of life for the Salem colonists, but it was also a major component in so many deaths.

Secondly, the trials were mostly perpetrated by a certain group of very powerful people. The Parrises, who were first affected by the strange sickness, and the Putnams, close friends of their family, were the main accusers. Samuel Parris, of the aforementioned Parris family, was the new and highly controversial minister in Salem. Several of the people who were killed disagreed with his appointment or with the trials. Some of the victims had a debt or quarrel with one of the families. In the 1690s, when the trials took place, powerful people were willing to do just about anything to eliminate their adversaries.

Finally, because of the beliefs of the time and the town’s extreme religiosity, the trials were very biased against women. Those who perpetuated the myth of witchcraft believed that “…women were more likely to be caught up in witchcraft, because they were less intelligent than men and therefore less able to resist the temptation of evil spirits” (Stewart 11). Many of the people killed in the trials were women who did not strictly adhere to the Puritans’ traditional way of life, including adulterers and nurses. In their culture, women were expected to be submissive and obedient, and any other behavior was suspected to be witchcraft. Salem’s treatment of women was reflective of the wider world’s skepticism and mistrust.

In conclusion, the Salem Witch Trials reflected the tensions of the time with its religious roots, unfair power imbalances, and mistreatment of women. This “witch hunt” inclination, although much more extreme in Salem’s case, went on to be very prevalent throughout later American history. Remnants of the Salem Witchcraft Trials linger today, including McCarthyism and our current president’s perception that he is affected by such unjust accusations. Robbie Lieberman explains, “[Senator Joseph McCarthy’s] …anti-Communist crusade had little practical value and shattered many people’s lives unnecessarily” (“History In Dispute XVII), not unlike its colonial counterpart in Salem. Evidently, part of the American dream is executing innocent people for political reasons.

Works Cited

1. Stewart, Gail B. ‘The Salem Witch Trials.’ Gale Virtual Reference Library, The Salem Witch Trials, ReferencePoint Press, 2013, pp. 8-11. Understanding American History. Accessed 30 Aug. 2019.
2. “BibleGateway.” Exodus 22 KJ21. Bible Gateway, www.biblegateway.com
3. Goss, K. David. ‘Daily Life During the Salem Witch Trials.” Gale Virtual Reference Library, Greenwood, 2012, pp. [109]-131. The Greenwood Press Daily Life Through History Series. Accessed 30 Aug. 2019.
4. Blumberg, Jess. “A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials.” Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution, 23 Oct. 2007, www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-the-salem-witch-trials-175162489/
5. Schiff, Stacy. “Inside the Salem Witch Trials.” The New Yorker, The New Yorker, 8 August 2015, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/09/07/the-witches-of-salem.
6. ‘History In Dispute.” Gale Virtual Reference Library, edited by Robbie Lieberman, vol. 19: The Red Scare After 1945, St. James Press, 2005, pp. XVII-XXI. Accessed 4 Sept. 2019.

‘The Crucible’ is a playwright that was written in 1953 by Arthur Miller which is a true story that reflects on the Salem Witch Trials. The Salem Witch Trials were a series of hearings and prosecutions that took place in different towns of Massachusetts between the years of 1692 and 1693. Joe McCarthy was widely involved and responsible for the time in which the Red Scare took place in the United States which was intense during the late 1940s and early 1950s. Both events in history are known as unjust and make a mockery of the United States due to the wrongful accusations that were being made and being taken seriously to the public eye and superior officials of either the state or the country. Three parallels between ‘The Crucible’ and McCarthyism are that the accused were expected to plead guilty and name others, were jailed and even sentenced to death without proper regard for evidence, and some had pleaded not guilty knowing they are sacrificing their personal welfare and their own life.

Both ‘The Crucible’ and McCarthyism are related to each other because the accused people were expected to plead guilty and name others who they “believed” were practicing witchcraft or being a communist. Abigail is seem to be inspired by the words of Reverend Hale and soon cries out, “I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil”. On the other hand, Ella Kazan gave a second testimony due to not naming several people who were involved in communism or were communists. This shows how people that plead non guilty of the supposed crimes were blacklisted and how others decided to accuse others for their own personal sake. This evidence helps show how ‘The Crucible’ parallels McCarthyism because the ones who were accused either expanded the situation and accused others or were punished for not naming anyone.

Many of the victims in these horrific events were unfortunately incarcerated, put to death, or their personal and economic life was forever ruined. For both, the hearings of the Salem Witch Trials and the cases of McCarthyism were mainly focused on people’s accusations but not based on factual evidence. The deputy governor of Salem, Danforth, stated, “Therefore, who may possibly be witness to it? The witch and the victim. None other”. This shows how no witnesses other than the victim were called up to testify nor was any proper form of evidence shown to prove the accusations that were made. This evidence helps show how ‘The Crucible’ parallels McCarthyism because the testimonies relied on the victims but no true evidence was properly shown.

In both incidents, some courageous and determined people pleaded not guilty to the accusations that were made against them. Pete Seeger who was accused of communism stated, “I love my country very dearly, and I greatly resent this implication that some of the places that I have sung and some of the people that I have known, and some of my opinions make me any less of an American”. Seeger refused to answer any questions or accuse others of being communists knowing that he was risking his career and his personal welfare. In ‘The Crucible’, John Proctor faced death by hanging rather than have condemn other innocent lives and was able to keep his integrity in his name by refusing to lie any more. This evidence helps show how ‘The Crucible’ parallels McCarthyism because although the ones who were accused faced unfair consequences, they were able to have a sense of peace in their heart knowing they sacrificed themselves to morally do the right thing without harming anyone else.

The McCarthy trials put many in the crossfire of being accused of being a communist. Arthur Miller was one of these few that were put under the spotlight. Though McCarthy’s crusade for justice from communist infiltration of our public offices, Miller found it useful to look back to the past. The Salem witch trials characterized by their allegations of warlocks and witches as the public grew into hysteria. The Red scare possessed many of these qualities as the fear of the spread of communism struck the hearts of much demanding hatred and redemption. McCarthy through his allegations of 205 people in congress brought the public to question those who were in power.

McCarthy started to rise in power during the “Red Scare ” in the early 1940s through the 1950s. This period was signified by the fear of the spread of communism. This fear leaked into our public institutions leading to allegations of communist allegiance within the ranks of our public offices. McCarthy’s influence began with a paper, a paper that alleged 205 members of the communist party working in the state department. As a result of his actions, “Despite a lack of any proof of subversion, more than 2,000 government employees lost their jobs as a result of McCarthy’s investigations.”(1) These allegations affected the lives of many people based on fear. As time went on people started to question his power and authority, “His influence waned in 1954 as a result of the sensational, nationally televised, 36-day hearing on his charges of subversion by U.S. Army officers and civilian officials.” (2) For a good amount of time, he seemed invulnerable until he was questioned. With his authority becoming undermined he started to lose power eventually leading down a path to irrelevance.

Arthur miller used the story of the Salem witch trials to express his discontent for the McCarthy trials. The Salem trials have many of the same elements as the McCarthy trials. In both scenarios, the public was overcome with fear wanting redemption against the devil. It can be shown how he felt connected to the Salem trials by him seeing himself as John Proctor, “John Proctor the sinner might overturn his paralyzing personal guilt and become the most forthright voice against the madness around him was a reassurance to me, and, I suppose, an inspiration: it demonstrated that a clear moral outcry could still spring even from an ambiguously unblemished soul.” (3) He felt that his story was similar to Proctor where no matter what he tried to do he could not present a case against McCarthy as his power was absolute. He saw Danforth the judge presiding over the case as similar to McCarthy, “Salem trials were similar to those employed by the congressional committees that I could easily be accused of skewing history for a mere partisan purpose.” (3) Danforth presented his presuppositions of the devil letting his bias slip into the case. McCarthy let his fear of the communists into his case and the public to gain support leading to his bias. In both cases, bias and fear had taken over leading to many being accused.

In conclusion, the two cases shared many similarities in the way they were presented and grew out of hand. Arthur used the Salem trials as a way to show the hypocrisy of the McCarthy trials taking inspiration from some of what he was experiencing. Fear and bias lead to the hysteria that often looks to false evidence to prove something that might not even be there. To become stronger as a society is good to look back to the past so we do not repeat the same mistakes.

Bibliography

1History.com Editors. “Joseph McCarthy.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 29 Oct. 2009, www.history.com/topics/cold-war/joseph-mccarthy#section_3. ‘

This source is useful because it comes from a trustworthy publication. The main reason I choose History.com is because of its in-depth but clear and concise explanation of the red scare and the McCarthy trials.

2 The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Joseph McCarthy.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 10 Nov. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Joseph-McCarthy.

I chose Encyclopaedia Britannica as my second source because it was another trustworthy publication with a weighty name. This particular publication is bound to its authenticity so it is expected to be well researched. The article is well explained and concise, quick to the facts.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica explain that McCarthy started as quiet and mostly unknown. His main rise to prominence began with his letter of the 205 communists in our public offices. His power started to falter when he testified before the senate finding himself unable to point out any blatant communists. His rampage throughout the houses of the united states congress during this time was found popular from the public’s perspective allowing him to continue carrying support. After his reelection, he gained the appointment of the chairmanship of the committee on the government’s operations in the senate. Although he was not able to prove anyone communist his flowery language forced some people out of jobs.

3 Miller, Arthur. “Why Arthur Miller Wrote ‘The Crucible.’” The New Yorker, The New Yorker, 25 June 2019, www.newyorker.com/magazine/1996/10/21/why-i-wrote-the-crucible.

I choose this source for its reputable name and the direct interview with Arthur Miller. The words of Arthur allow the reader to see his perspective of the case getting to the direct answer of why he wrote “The Crucible.” The article was as well written later when the hysteria of the red scare had died down allowing him to speak freely.

In Arthur Miller’s, “The Crucible” his story takes place in 1692 Salem, Massachusetts. In the village of Salem, a string of unlawful accusations and hangings are conducted due to mass hysteria surrounding so called, “witches.” He aims to portray the dangers of how mass hysteria in a community can affect action and the idea of guilt until proven innocent. The story begins as a minister called Reverend Parris stumbles upon a handful of young girls, including his niece Abigail and daughter Betty, in the woods dancing and performing a form of ritual in which they attempt to send a curse upon members of the community they hold grudges with. The girls realized their sinning and thus blamed their actions on the devil. For the time period and location of this story, this is significant, as the whole community in Salem is extremely devoted to their Puritan beliefs. The idea of witches and the devil spread through the community like wildfire and accusations were almost becoming customary to everyday life, this relates to McCarthyism in the idea that one person or group of people can start a chain of charges toward innocent people just based off false ideas of fear with no evidence. In America during the 1950 a man named Joseph McCarthy backed by millions of supporters due to his aggressive and confident personality led a series of trials against thousands of innocent Americans in the working class on suspicion of Communist conversion. In both pieces of literature, The Crucible and HUAC Testimony the theme that mass hysteria and exaggerated lying can lead to unlawful accusations against innocent people.

In the excerpt of Arthur Miller’s testimony to the House Un-American Activities Committee, the Committee member Gordon H. Scherer says, “Let us go into literature. Let me ask you, do you believe that today a Communist who is a poet should have the right to advocate the overthrow of this Government by force and violence in his literature?” (HUAC Testimony) This shows Scherer does not believe all people should have the right to freedom of speech or press and if one is to write literature against that of the government the individual is sure to be Communist. This represents McCarthyism due to the fact Scherer is firstly protruding on the rights given to all in the US Constitution as well as making a decisive accusation that this man is indeed Communist based off very little evidence. A situation similar to this can be seen on the first page of The Crucible: Act III when Judge Hathorne listens to the young group without question when charging Martha Corey. She is first accused of witchcraft simply because she read while her husband prayed, which distracted him. Hathorne says, “Now, Martha Corey, there is abundant evidence in our hands to show that you have given yourself to the reading of fortunes. Do you deny it?” (Act 3 Page 1) After being told by her husband of her reading and the acting of the group of girls the judge claims that to be an abundance of evidence and enough to charge her of witchcraft. This is similar to McCarthyism because again it is making harsh accusations without adequate amounts of evidence and shows the idea of guilty until proven innocent in the wake of mass hysteria.

During the series of trials being held in Salem, Giles Corey, who is a elderly inhabitant of Salem, as well as his wife were both accused of witchcraft and later sentenced to death. For Giles, he refuses to answer the court when asked about his personal information, “I will give you no name. I will stand mute.” (Act 3 Page 6) Similarly to this in Arthur Miller’s Testimony, “Miller gave the committee a detailed account of his own political activities, but the chairman demanded that Miller give the names of others, thus reneging on his earlier promise. Miller refused to comply, remarking, ‘I could not use the name of another person and bring trouble on him.’” (HUAC Paragraph 3) Miller was later sentenced to prison and even stripped of his US passport due to contempt of Congress. Similarly to McCarthyism, both of these men were being charged with an offense when there is little to no evidence against them, but due to their choice to respect the privacy of themself or others they were sentenced to prison or death.

In conclusion, in both of the two pieces “The Crucible” and the “HUAC Testimony” McCarthyism is shown. Firstly, the Congress in the case of Arthur Miller, and the Court in the case of Giles Corey, have made harsh accusations on these individuals with no reason. Additionally, when individuals are being charged with a ridiculous offense with little evidence and they choose to respect privacy and go against the word of either the Court or Congress they are punished. In both texts, the authors show that in a time of mass hysteria accusations and charges can be put on anyone and how governments could strip those of their rights.

In times of fear, people look to a person to help guide and lead them. Because of all the attention, that person’s voice becomes a powerful tool that can change the views of many. The play, “The Crucible”, written by Auther Miller, was the story set in Massachusetts Bay Colony during 1692–93 focusing on the Salem Witch Trials. The Crucible’s main antagonist, Abigail Williams, is an orphan girl of 17 years. She becomes obsessed with power after she and some other young girls in her town begin crying witch to the women and men of their village. Abigail originally called her elderly black slave servant, Tituba, a witch, to save her name after she and the other girls were caught in the woods dancing. At this time, it was considered a sin to dance in a Puritan society. The author of the play, Auther Miller, wrote the play in the 1950s, during the Era of McCarthyism. McCarthyism, in the 1950s, was when Senator Joseph McCarthy took charge of the House Un-American Activities Committee in the Senate and charged many America with being communists during the Cold War. The play shows heavy similarities between the Salem Witch Trials and the anti-communist crazed McCarthy who had taken control of America with his words of fear. The main similarities both the Salem Witch Trial in “The Crucible” and the McCarthyism Era in the 1950s were that both were spearheaded by one main person searching for power, the mass hysteria in the people brought on by the antagonists, and the fact that both were targeting certain stereotypes of people, resulting in both Abigail and Senator McCarthy wielding too much power and causing the convention and death of many.

The Cold War, in the 1950s, between the United States of America and the Soviet Union, caused many Americans to be on edge and fearful of a nuclear war between the two countries. A nuclear war would mean the end of the human race as we know it, so due to their fear, they looked to a man who they thought was willing to do something, Senator Joseph McCarthy from Wisconsin. He was the head of the House Un-American Activities Committee in congress and was tasked with finding communists within the United States. The committee called citizens to testify in high-profile hearings before Congress using subpoenas.. Senator McCarthy used this power to boost his name into the news and convince many Americans that their government was filled with spies and traitors. Just as McCarthy, Abigail Williams saw an opportunity to take control of a situation and gain power. The village of Salem was going mad with the news of witches and they wasted no time to see the names of people they wished to be gone. Abigail used this to propel herself to become the most popular witness to witchcraft. Elizabeth tells us of the power she gained when she said. It shows how the town listened to her every word and believed it as though it was fact. Both Abigail and McCarthy the fear of their time to become a powerful symbol. Abigail deep down probably just wanted a say in the world, because, in Puritan society, women had little to no say at all in what was happening. Joseph McCarthy wanted to power to become a voice to the people, because for him, you either had power, or you were nothing.

In both the village of Salem in the play and the United States as a whole during the McCarthy Era, people were scared for their lives. Everyone was in a state of mass hysteria. People didn’t know if they could trust their neighbors, because of the fear that they might have secretly made a compact with the devil, just as the people in America at the time did not know whether or not their neighbor might secretly be a communist. A great parallel between the two is Rosenberg Trial in 1951 and the accusation of Elizabeth and John Proctor being witches. The Rosenberg Trial was when Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were accused of selling nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. The only direct evidence in the case that supported the Rosenberg’s guilt was Julius’s brother-in-law, David Greenglass’s confession. However, many people to this day still believe that the confession was false and believe that Greenglass lied in court just to save himself. After the trials, the Rosenbergs were offered a deal in which their death sentences would be commuted in return for an admission of their guilt. They refused and were sent to death in the electric chair. This is very similar to what happened to Elizabeth and John Proctor. Both John and Elizabeth were accused of witchcraft, while Elizabeth confessed to it, John refused to confess, and with Mary Warren’s testimony that she saw John with the devil, which we now know is also false, John was then sentenced to death. David Greenglass and Mary Warren choose themselves over the truth, both secretly wanting the power and good name that came with the false testimony. This shows that because of the time and fear within people, possibly innocent people were sentenced to death. Some of the villagers in Salem cried witch because they wanted to gain more land, others because they were looking to give blame for one reason or another. An example of that was when Thomas Putnum named Rebecca Nurse a witch to get revenge on Francis Nurse, her husband, due to him preventing Thomas’s brother from becoming a minister. The horror in the air allowed evil men and women to convince the mass that someone innocent may be guilty of a crime they never committed. This resulted in the death of many, innocent of any crime, all due to someone speaking their name with little to no proof to support the claim.

No matter the time in history, there is always a group of people who are oppressed and attacked whether it be due to beliefs, gender, or social class. In “The Crucible” when Abigail first names Tituba a witch, she didn’t choose her for no reason, Abigail was smart and chose her because of her low social class as a female black slave. Tituba would have an almost impossible chance at proving herself innocent, sense she was accused by a respect white lady in the Puritan society. Realizing this, Tituba admits to being a witch, knowing she would die if she didn’t confess. Tituba also names Goody Good, along with Goody Osburn, claiming she saw them with the devil. By doing this, Tituba becomes somewhat of an asset to the church sense she has seen those women with the devil. Reverend Hale goes to say how “(tituba was sent by god….)”. The people of Salem believed Tituba when she named Goody Good and Goody Osburn because they were already had the reputation of being an outcast to society, low class, and they did not do as most Purtan women did in the 1690’s in New England. Because of this, it was easy for the court along with the people of Salem to believe them as possible witches eventually leading to their deaths. This is also a reflection of what was happening while Auther Miller was writing the play in the 1950’s. HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) was in a mad hunt for communists and the committee had a special interest in Hollywood and the motion picture industry, which HUAC believed to have a large number of Communists. With fear circulating, many Hollywood film studios put out blacklists against directors, writers, actors and other personnel implicated in Communist activity. The biggest investigation being when the Hollywood Ten were called to testify in October 1947. All of the ten directors and writers involved were sentenced to prison and blacklisted after being cited for contempt in congress. Hollywood was an easy target for HUAC because it had a large population of people who had joined the Communist Party prior to World War II and the conflicts with the Soviet Union. Most if not all had nothing to do with the conflicts of the time, but they were a big, easy target for Senator McCarthy and HUAC because of their big names in the movie industry along with their past with the Communist Party. This goes to show, just as in Salem, certain groups were targeted due to their social standing and status. These groups became an excuse for the courts/government groups and an easy way to convict people who the rest of the population could believe to be guilty.

Auther Miller, while writing “The Crucible”, shows the troubles of McCarthyism time and time again in his work. Both McCarthyism and “The Crucible” have one main antagonist feeding off their newfound power, mass hysteria and fear in their country/town, and both show ways on how a group or minority of people can become the main target for attacks and convictions. In Salem, eventually the settlers started to question the authenticity of the girls’ claims, realizing things had escalated belonged the point of reasoning and that it was time to come to the facts. Just as people in the US started to realize that Senator McCarthy was beginning to take things too far after McCarthy claimed that the US Army was infiltrated with communists. In the end, as we look back on history, we can see how mass fear and distrust can lead to disastrous things being drawn way out of proportion ending in life’s being ruined and in the worst cases death. Showing the similarities between the McCarthyism Era and his work, Auther Miller, does a phenomenal job of connecting present-day problems with the problem the generations before us faced and making us realize that we should learn from the past, not repeat it.

Justice comes from acknowledging the truth. Discuss in relation to Twelve Angry Men and The Crucible.

In the allegorical plays The Crucible and Twelve Angry Men, Arthur Miller and Reginald Rose unveil the flaws within the American legal system by expressing how justice cannot be truly obtained unless the truth is recognized. Justice is represented in the two texts and is found when the truth is acknowledged by looking at the facts, evidence, testimonies and then removing the bias. In The Crucible, the events within the text occur in Salem, Massachusetts during the Salem witch trials of 1692. Opposingly, in Twelve Angry Men, the play is set in 1957, New York, in a society facing the repercussions of McCarthyism. Although these texts differ in context with The Crucible being a metaphor for the McCarthy’s Communist ‘witch huntssocioeconomic, both Miller and Rose suggest that due to personal prejudice, ulterior motives, and fear, facts and evidence are disregarded which then leads to the obstruction of justice.

In both the plays, Miller and Rose explore the theme of prejudice and how it leads to the disregard of the truth. This is illustrated through Juror 4, who is arguably a symbol for the ideology of McCarthyism of 1950s USA. This is demonstrated through how Juror 4 has a clear prejudice against people of different socio-economic backgrounds due to the aftereffects of McCarthyism. This is evident when he states that “It’s no secret that slums are breeding grounds for criminals.” Through using the plural noun “breeding grounds” Rose reveals how Juror 4 views this group of people as animalistic and barbaric. Rose essentially is suggesting to the audience that due to Juror 4’s prejudice he is unable to form an unbiased opinion of the defendant, which obstructs his ability to form an unbiased decision about the verdict. Similarly, in The Crucible, the racial individuality of Tituba causes the people of Salem to hold a prejudice against her due to her ethnicity. The individuality of Tituba causes her to be objectified as she has the lowest social position as a slave, therefore making her the easiest and most likely to be immediately accused by the other residents of Salem of any wrongdoing that occurs. This is acknowledged through how Tituba knows that “as always, trouble in this house eventually lands on her back.” Miller, therefore, makes it evident how due to her ethnicity, Tituba will always be blamed for any crime that occurs in Salem. The racial prejudice towards Tituba is further communicated when Abigail states that she “know not –[Tituba] spoke Barbados.” Abigail accuses Tituba of witchcraft, thus using her race against her, as being from Barbados makes her different, which then impacts the way people perceive her. Symbolically she is being considered as an outcast of town, reflecting the African-Americans of 1950s society. Miller essentially implies that due to her racial individuality, the people of Salem disregard the truth to then immediately place the blame onto Tituba. Ultimately, both Miller and Rose express that the truth is overlooked when people hold a prejudice towards others.

Both Rose and Miller communicate how the ulterior motives of people can lead to the truth being obscured and ignored. Rose demonstrates this through Juror 3 and his estranged relationship with his son. Juror 3 states that when his son was sixteen, they “had a fight” and that he had not seen him in “two years.” This gives the impression that Juror 3 has a poor relationship with his son, consequently impairing his judgement about the young defendant as he has a negative bias towards the youth as he is reminded of his son. This is further evident when Juror 8 accuses Juror 3 to “personally want” the defendant to die, “not because of the facts.” Through using the adverb “personally” Rose conveys how Juror 3 has a direct bias towards the youth, which implies that due to Juror 3’s bias, he wants the defendant to be guilty despite facts and reason. Ultimately this gives the impression that due to Juror 3’s personal motives and emotions he overlooks reason and thinks irrationally. Correspondingly, in The Crucible the ulterior motives of Thomas Putnam cause him to overlook the truth. Although in this case, Putnam manipulates the truth to his benefit and personal gain whereas Juror 3 acted based on his emotions. Thomas Putnam uses the witch trials in order to increase his wealth by accusing people of witchcraft in order to obtain their land. “If Jacobs hangs for a witch, he forfeit up his property – that’s law! And there is none but Putnam with the coin to buy so great a piece. This man is killing his neighbours for his land!” Giles accuses Putnam of encouraging his daughter to accuse people of witchcraft so that he can claim their land after they are executed. Miller implies that due to Putnam’s greed and want to increase his wealth, he obstructs the truth and justice by accusing innocent people of witchcraft in order to claim their land. Overall, both Miller and Rose convey how one’s personal motives can lead to the obstruction and neglect of the truth.

Fear and paranoia and how they impact the truth are aspects that are explored in both plays. Rose illustrates this through Juror 10 as he has a clear bias against people of different ethnic backgrounds, which reflects the fear of foreigners in the McCarthyism era. This is expressed through Juror 10’s blatant racism and clear prejudice against people of different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. This is evident when he states that “They are different. They act different.” Through utilising the pronoun “they” Rose reveals that Juror 10 ostracises people of different ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds due to the fear caused by the after-effects of McCarthyism. Ultimately, Rose suggests how Juror 10 cannot form a clear unbiased opinion on the defendant due to his fear, thus impacting his ability to focus on the facts and evidence. Contrastingly, in The Crucible the fear that is presented is more perceptible among the people of Salem, however, it also had more significant consequences. This is clearly illustrated when John Proctor confesses to committing adultery with Abigail. “I have known her, Sir.” Here John Proctor confesses, consequently revealing Abigail’s true motivations as he states that “it is a whore’s vengeance.” This revelation should have prevented the tragedy of the witch hunt as it would have been revealed that all Abigail’s accusations were false, however, due to Elizabeth’s fear of John losing his good name, she lies: “my husband – is a goodly man, sir.” Miller essentially indicates that if it were not for Elizabeth’s fear of John losing his good name, then the witch hunts would have stopped as Abigail’s accusations would have been made false. Ultimately, both Miller and Rose communicate how due to fear and paranoia, people become deceitful and lie, which then obscures the truth.

Justice is affected when the truth is ignored and disregarded. This is explored in the allegorical plays The Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose and The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Although the plays differ in context, both Miller and Rose express that justice is affected when the truth is overlooked. Ultimately Rose and miller show that facts and reason are often are disregarded due to personal prejudice, ulterior motives, and fear.

The Salem witch trials were a time of mass fear and hysteria around witches. Hundreds of women and girls were accused of being “witches.” A similar time of mass hysteria and fear also occurred at the beginning of the 20th century. It was called the Red Scare, spurred on by McCarthyism. Named after its leader, Joseph Mccarthy, a Republican Wisconsin senator, the movement gained huge traction due to pre-established hysteria around so-called “Reds” in the government and by hyping up this hysteria for their own political power. The Crucible is a play written by Arthur Miller about the Salem witch trials during the late 1600s. The play is a strong parallel to McCarthyism during the Cold War due to the historical parallels of malice, sensationalism, abuse of power, and the ingenious use of the era of the Salem Witch Trials. One of the most important themes of both McCarthy and The Crucible is the hysteria created for their own selfish purposes. In 1950, Joseph McCarthy came to a conference claiming to have a list of 250 people who were members of the state department who were also known members of the communist party. “I have here in my hand a list of two hundred and five people that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy of the State Department.”(BrainyQuote.com)

This also happened in The Crucible. Abigail sees an opportunity to get rid of people and begins naming names in order to create hysteria. “I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!”(Miller, 48) The idea of the enemy being near you is enough to put fear into the heart of the most battle-hardened soldier. Both Abigail and McCarthy employed these tactics because they realized that they could be deployed to their advantage. For McCarthy, it was used in order to block democratic policies, calling those who even dared to oppose him anti-American and Reds. Abigail realized that the hysteria around this to get rid of Goody Proctor, the wife of Abigail’s lover, John Proctor. This hysteria becomes a weapon for Mccarthy, who deploys it against the united states military. McCarthy brings forward hundreds of witnesses but is particularly malicious toward one young army lawyer. At this, the opposing counsel states the thought that is on all of our minds. ‘Until this moment, Senator, I think I never really gauged your cruelty or your recklessness.’ When McCarthy tried to continue his attack, Welch angrily interrupted, ‘Let us not assassinate this lad further, senator. You have done enough. Have you no sense of decency?” (US Senate Hearing, 1954)

A similar moment also happens in The Crucible. Abigail arranges for a needle to be in her stomach, and a poppet to have a needle in its stomach at the proctor home. After the needle in Abbi’s stomach is discovered, Abbi names Goody Proctor to be a witch trying to kill her. “The girl, the Williams girl, Abigail Williams, sir. She sat to dinner in Reverend Parris’s house tonight, and without word nor warnin’ she falls to the floor. Like a struck beast, he says, and screamed a scream that a bull would weep to hear. And he goes to save her, and, stuck two inches in the flesh of her belly, he draw a needle out. And demandin’ of her how she come to be so stabbed, she – to Proctor now – testify it -were your wife’s familiar spirit pushed it in.” (Miller, 74) Abigail and Mccarthy have already created fear for their own goals. Now they have weaponized it. Mccarthy created a situation in which he can pervert the judicial process by using senate hearings to get around court hearings and ruin someone by reputation rather than prison. Abbi has also done this because she knows that there is no way for Goody Proctor to prove that she is not a witch. Abigail believes that with the death of Goody Proctor, she can then marry her love, John Proctor.While the significant time difference between the age of McCarthy and the Salem Witch Trials can be interpreted as a blemish on the overall critique offered by Miller, in reality, it is a strength. This time difference gives the author the chance to create a dynamic, 3-dimensional character such as Abigail, who serves as the antagonist and motif. Both pieces of evidence have already been introduced, but they remain relevant for both points. “I have here in my hand a list of two hundred and five people that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy of the State Department.”(BrainyQuote.com) This also happened in The Crucible.

Abigail sees an opportunity to get rid of people and begins naming names to create hysteria. “I saw Sarah Good with the Devil! I saw Goody Osburn with the Devil! I saw Bridget Bishop with the Devil!”(Miller, 48) In the play, Abigail doesn’t just use the tool of hysteria, she is hysteria. What this means is that the author has meticulously created Abigail and her actions to represent or mirror the ideas and intentions of Senator Joseph McCarthy. Neither of whom has any proof that what they are saying is true. What they do have on their side is the fear of the people. Both people come in swinging because they know that if they hit hard enough, their opponents will back down in fear. But the character known as Abigail would not have been possible without this huge gap. The author found the perfect time and place in history to create a strong critique of 20th century McCarthyism. No other time and place in history contains such a well-documented, absolutely hysterical hunt by those with dark intentions. The author quite simply chose the ideal setting in which to set The Crucible.Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is a play written as a brilliant critique of McCarthyism. The play contains all of the major themes of McCarthyism: abuse of power, hysteria, and malicious intent.

Works Cited

1. Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, NY:Penguin Group, 1953.
2. Print.Storrs, Landon R. Y. “McCarthyism and the Second Red Scare.”
3. Oxford Research Lienhard, John H. “No. 1037: RYE ERGOT AND WITCHES.” No. 1037: Rye Ergot and Witches, 1997, www.uh.edu/engines/epi1037.htm.History.com Editors.
4. “Joseph McCarthy.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 29 Oct. 2009, www.history.com/topics/cold-war/joseph-mccarthy.’
5. Joseph R. McCarthy Quotes.’ BrainyQuote.com.
6. BrainyMedia Inc, 2019. 22 October 2019. https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/joseph_r_mccarthy_182995Rtichie, Donald, and Elizabeth Bolling.
7. “‘Have You No Sense of Decency?’.” U.S. Senate: ‘Have You No Sense of Decency?’, 24 Jan. 2019, www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Have_you_no_sense_of_decency.htm?platform=hootsuite.

Throughout the course of Judith G. Poucher’s book, State of Defiance: Challenging the Johns Committee’s Assault on Civil Liberties, Judith G. Poucher discusses the empowered individuals who “challenged the prejudices of the legislature’s investigating group, the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee. It is known and referred to as the Johns Committee. Judith G. Poucher introduces the stories of five citizens. Virgil Hawkins, who was focused on his childhood dream of integrating UF. Ruth Perry, a Miami NAACP officer. Sig Diettrich, a professor at the University of Florida. G.G Mock, a teacher, and Margaret Fisher, an educator at the University of South Florida. They all endured prejudices against the Johns Committee and still stood their ground and fought back.

McCarthyism was a campaign that had a detrimental impact on the lives of many Americans. The Johns Committee’s motives and methods mirrored those of McCarthyism in a number of different ways. McCarthyism used tactics like publicly accusing Americans, oftentimes, without evidence as well as conducting investigations and hearings in order to invoke fear into individuals that didn’t want anything more than to just end segregation and have equality. The Johns Committee did just that, they used the fear of Communism to portray the NAACP as Communists influenced to undermine the organization’s integration lawsuits. They ultimately were against anything they felt posed a threat. The Johns Committee used tactics or methods similar to Senator Joseph McCarthy to extort information out of people and even fabricate sources or evidence. During investigations, they used illicit tactics against citizens to gain information with no substantial evidence of whether or not, what was said was true. This moral injustice caused the many who were harassed by the Johns Committee their reputation. (pg. 142)

Integrity is the practice of being honest and showing consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values, despite the circumstance. These five citizens showed an immense amount of integrity as well as other qualities in order to resist the Johns Committees’ harmful agenda. Whether it was to defend a cause or in favor of protecting a specific person, these individuals were relentless on continuing their fight for their cause. I found Virgil Hawkins’s form of resistance to be very strategical on his part, he outsmarted the tyrant lawyer Mark Hawes. During his trial, Hawkin’s remained assertive when Hawes persisted on asking the same questions. The more Mark Hawes tried to get Virgil Hawkins to admit that his lawsuit to become an attorney was controlled by the NAACP, the more opportunities Hawes gave Hawkins to show his potential as a lawyer. Hawkins met Hawes’ relentless repetition with either simple denials or with emphatic, confident repetitions of his own: “For the fourth time, no sir….No, no. That’s the NAACP again, isn’t it? No, No!” Hawkins also found flaws in Hawe’s interrogation, reminding him that he should be asking Hawkins about his reasons for wanting to attend UF, not Hawkins’ reasons as relayed by third parties. Unfortunately, in order for Virgil Hawkins’s boyhood dream of integrating UF had to come with a sacrifice. He chose not to reapply to UF so that other African Americans could be admitted immediately. Ruth Perry, on the other hand, was fighting for justice for the African American community and constitutional rights for all. She was willing to put it all on the line, her life, freedom, and career, for what she believed in and that was in democracy and the Constitution. In hopes of protecting members and the organization from the false accusations from the Johns Committee, Perry did her part by protecting the NAACP membership lists and other records. Dietrich’s integrity and sense of honor were tested when Hawes used serval tactics, like humiliation, to try and convince Diettrich to name gays at UF. His desire to protect UF was too strong. His other main goal was to protect his wife at all costs, by not providing Hawes any detailed information about his wife. Thus causing Diettrich did not cooperate. He left that integration with his honor still intact. (pg. 26, 145-149)

A number of factors enabled Florida’s “little McCarthyism” to keep flourishing well after McCarthyism began fading on the national level. The Johns Committee thrived off the fear of their colleagues and constituents. They feed off anxieties about integration, Communism, homosexuality, liberal teaching, and academic freedom. Ultimately, they feared things they did not understand, things they couldn’t control, and things that went against what the believed were a treat to national security. The Johns Committee used these concerns to their advantage and they were skilled at it too. The Johns Committee went as far as using schools and universities as a place to combat these anxieties. Once again, this was because of the popular fears that integrated schools, as a Communist plot, would lead to racial and sexual perversion while liberal teaching caused America’s youth to question traditional values. Thus proving that the Johns Committee trafficked in fear and used that fear to gain even more power. (pg. 143)

Although the Johns Committee’s epic demise really began in February of 1957 when Virgil Hawkins became the first person to oppose the committee, the Florida legislature debated the future of the Johns Committee long after in the spring of 1965. Slowly, but surely, the building of individual resistance by witnesses that helped to create a gathering momentum of opposition. It didn’t help that different organizations, like the American Association of University Women, began to join in, resulting in a domino effect that furthermore damaged the image of the Johns Committee.

Based on the findings thus far, it is evident that the Johns Committee’s motives and methods were damaging. The Johns Committee’s destroyed the lives of many in Florida as a byproduct of their corrupted efforts. In the midst of this, five individuals who began as misunderstood citizens came out as champions. They were willing to fight for what they believed in, no matter the cost. They fought with an admirable amount of integrity and honor all while facing the power of official oppression. Still, they stood their ground and never wavered from the truth, their truth.